Sneak Preview / Review: Clinique Pop Lip Color + Swatches of All 13 Shades

By Beautifulbuns

The passing of our Founding Father LKY seems to have brought out the true Singaporean in me, and by that, I mean my unwavering determination in queuing for hours, as well as my kiasu-ness. In colloquial terms, kiasu translates literally to “being afraid to lose” and implies the need to be first. So ta-dah~ here’s (a possible) countrywide first dibs on all 13 shades of Clinique’s new Pop Lip Color + Primer!

Clinique Pop Lip Color + Primer, $33 each

Available in 13 shades, and these are divided into color families – Nudes, Tawnies (corals/oranges), Pinks and Violets

  • Nudes: 01 Nude Pop, 03 Cola Pop, 04 Beige Pop (02 isn’t brought it cos it’s a super dark colour)
  • Tawnies: 05 Melon Pop, 06 Poppy Pop, 08 Cherry Pop
  • Pinks: 09 Sweet Pop, 10 Punch Pop, 11 Wow Pop
  • Violets: 13 Love Pop, 14 Plum Pop, 15 Berry Pop, 16 Grape Pop

—NUDES—

01 Nude Pop: Beige with some pink – similar to 04 (but that has more beige)

03 Cola Pop: Brownish burgundy red

04 Beige Pop: Similar to 01 but this has more nude beige

—TAWNIES—

05 Melon Pop: Beige with a hint of coral pink

06 Poppy Pop: Coral red (with hints of orange)

08 Cherry Pop: Reddish fuschia with blue undertones

—PINKS—

09 Sweet Pop: Everyday-wearable pink

10 Punch Pop: Bright hot pink with blue cool undertones – this is my favorite simply cos it’s a bright without being too glaring.

11 Wow Pop: Bright lilac pink (this is a hydrating version of my YSL in Tropical Pink)

—VIOLETS—

13 Love Pop: A burgundy red with slight gold sheen

14 Plum Pop: A surprisingly neutral, wearable plum-pink

15 Berry Pop: Possibly the darkest color I’ve ever tried – this is a deep, rich burgundy (with some hints of purple) red

16 Grape Pop: This is a lilac-purple (a hydrating version of VDL’s Candy You Expert Color Lip Cube)






I say…

The Packaging: It’s an angled square tube that prevents it from rolling off surfaces – always a godsend for le klutz of me. The cap is a click-on one that fits snugly and won’t be easily removed by accident from the rollin’ rollin’ rollin’ around in the handbag.

The Texture & Application: It’s smooth, creamy, somewhat moisturising – pretty decent and I’d call it above average. What I love about this is that it’s a primer and lip color in one – it really helps in smoothing over the lip flakes and filling in the fine lines so that the colours (even the lighter shades) can go on properly. What I love even more about this is that despite trying on 13 shades in one shot (as well as multiple removals using the cleansing sheets), my lips surprisingly did not get sore or chapped – the lippie removes easily without leaving a stain, and it also helped moisturise and soothe the lips.

The Verdict: It may not be all that visually appealing (sorry Clinique!), but don’t be deceived by its looks. This is kinda like the girl-next-door in terms of lipsticks – it looks like a Plain Jane, but one that can do a one-two punch knockout because it is both a primer and lip color (or should I say one-two-three punch since it also helps to moisturise the lips?). The colours are also pretty wearable – not the superbly bright ones for the less adventurous, and I daresay these colours are mostly office-safe :D Defo worth a try!